


I Think I've Known You Before (And Loved)

by daydreamorbust



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, But don't realize it until their adults, Curious Archer - Freeform, F/F, First meeting at around 14, I fell in love with this ship, I just wanted the history, I love them both, I'm really figuring this out as I go, Mad Archer, They fall in love with each other, They meet as youngins and grow up as friends, and they will find that out, they are soulmates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-31
Updated: 2018-05-31
Packaged: 2019-05-16 10:05:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14809233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daydreamorbust/pseuds/daydreamorbust
Summary: Alice and Robin have known each other before. Known isn't the right word, they were best friends, inseparable, ignorantly in love before they even knew what that was.They just didn't know it until they didn't have each other anymoreorAlice and Robin meet when they are younger and are immediately connected. They are separated at 17, but they eventually find their love again.





	I Think I've Known You Before (And Loved)

**Author's Note:**

> I immediately fell in love with these two and wanted to write more interactions, specifically interactions before all the blasted curses got in the way. If you want to rant about these cuties anytime, you can find me @awkwardnb on tumblr. Let me know if there is anything you want to see, I'm making this up as I go.
> 
> Leave a kudos or comment if you please.

Robin ran through the forest, jumping over fallen trees and launching over streams, it felt like she traveled entire realms once the day was done. While her legs were pumping, the makeshift bow put together with a string from her dress and a stick from a tree, hung over her shoulder, was knocking against her back with every step.

It was the best way to distract her from all the pressures of her normal life, all the bullies trying to both attack and initiate her. More recently the latter.

She was very cautious of where she placed her feet, so it surprised no one more than Robin when she nearly broke her nose before her hands caught the ground first.

Fingers still digging in the dirt, Robin listened around her for sounds that didn’t make sense, just like her mother had taught her to do. 

She heard a twig snap to her left and pushed herself up into a squat, pulling the stick bow from her back and arming it with a long twig by her foot. Robin pointed it in the direction she thought she heard the sound. Her eyes were scanning, but nothing was screaming ‘threat’.

She heard another twig snap to her right, a lot louder now. She could hear pulsing in her ears as she pulled the string tighter with every second that passed. 

Robin heard a gasp behind her and whipped around, nearly falling forward again. 

“You’re not a rabbit.”

The string on Robin’s bow snapped. 

~

“Papa swore by that snare, it should have caught me dinner.”

The girl was now pacing back and forth between two trees, Robin long since residing to sit back in the dirt, still gripping tightly onto her broken bow.

The girl ran her hand through messy blonde curls, still rambling under her breath. 

“Um, excuse me,” Robin said while sticking her hand out, bottom lip firmly held by her teeth in between words, “am I interrupting?”

Maybe she was fourteen, but goddammit her mother taught her to be polite, and her aunt taught her to be clever; snarky more accurately. Robin personally thought it was a brilliant combination.

“No, no, no, my train of thought has a mind of its own, not even,” the blonde looked down at the broken twigs in Robin’s hand, “an arrow could stop it.”

“Okay, while as long as I’m not interrupting, I’m Robin,” she stuck her hand out, maybe a little dorkily, but she would only focus on the wild movements of the girl’s hand.

“Well that may be a problem, you see I knew a Robin, well not so much as knew, as I had a pet frog my papa found me, that was a Robin too, it died a few years ago, and you are the new Robin, Nobin let’s say,” she grabbed Robin’s hand, “nice to meet you, Nobin.”

“I didn’t catch your name in there,”

Still holding her hand firmly, she said, “Oh, righty, I’m Alice, my papa calls me starfish, though I’m not sure how that’s relevant to you.”

She held the whirlwind-- Alice’s hand a little tighter, “it’s nice to meet you, Alice.”

“And you again, Nobin,” she dropped the perfectly warm hand.

“What were you saying about a rabbit before?”

“Oh, the rabbit, or not the rabbit, but the lack of a rabbit, and instead more of a Robin.”

“Were you chasing a rabbit?”

“I always seem to be chasing a rabbit these days,” she shook her head, letting the blond curls fall in her eyes, “, but no, I was just hoping for one to pop up.”

“For your dinner?”

“It certainly wasn’t going to be as a pet, that’s for sure, those mischievous little creatures would never stay put.”

“Does that mean you have no dinner?”

“Well, technically yes, but meeting you was much more fulfilling.”

“Then come with me instead!” Robin nodded determinedly, sure that her mother wouldn’t mind an extra mouth to feed.

Alice’s eyebrows shot up, along with her lip curling up to reveal a broad smile. “Really? For dinner?”

Robin nodded again.

“I’ve never had dinner with anyone else but my papa before,” Alice stopped her movements to think, “, but he always said new experiences were always the good option,”

“So yes then?”

“Yes.”

Alice took her hand again, it was just to pull her to her feet, but Robin held a little tighter once she was up. Alice took that as a sign to not let go.

~

Their walk through the forest took longer than expected, Robin ran for longer and faster than she had previous days. She usually ran the way back, but she walked with Alice, purely so she didn’t have to let go of her soft hand.

On their walk, Robin couldn’t help but notice, the beautiful red skirt Alice was wearing that was twirling back and forth every few steps.

If she wasn’t staring so much, she may not have noticed the shivers racking through the shorter girl’s body. 

Without hesitation, she ripped off her cloak, never letting go of Alice’s hand, even if it might have sped up the process. She draped it over Alice’s shoulder, not even wavering when she opened her mouth to protest.

“Oh just take it, I’m used to the cold nights,” Robin said this without thinking.

“That sounds like the beginning of a story, specifically a sad one.” Alice was no longer shivering, but her eyebrows were scrunched up in worry for her new friend.

“Not a sad one, but my mother had to leave for a few weeks two years ago, and I had to stay with my Aunt. She doesn’t especially like the warm weather, so she keeps her house in the negative degrees. I spent most of my nights on the roof, it was warmer than the house, but it wasn’t exactly an ideal temperature.”

“The roof, really? I’d imagine you’d fall off of one of those given the chance.”

“Oh, I did, don’t worry, it was only ten feet, but my arm hurt like hell for the few minutes before my Aunt heard my scream and came out to heal it.”

“So it is a sad story.”

“It’s not sad, it’s educational, I no longer sleep on roofs, I find the extra stash of blankets.”


End file.
